Fire Emblem: Amulet of Souls
by jonontomin
Summary: On the 400th anniversary of the Lycian Unification under Roy, an idealistic prince unleashes an ancient and forbidden power in an effort to cleanse the world of imperfection. Only the few that are left must band together to unify two isolated nations in a race against total annihilation. A story with original characters set in the Fire Emblem universe.
1. Chapter 1

_"Only through infinite knowledge can infinite peace be attained."_ – Prince Kardin of Lycia

The summers in Araphen were always long and hot. Countless nobles would visit from distant lands to partake in the harvest festivals and feasts. Perhaps the most popular attraction of the summer was the Dragon Festival, in which the anniversary of Lycia's unification is celebrated. It is a night of great jubilation as friends from across the continent tell old tales of heroics over endless pints of beer. It was widely considered to be the happiest time of year for the Kingdom of Lycia, but this year was going to be different…

It all happened so fast…

"Where? Where? Where is everyone? It's… so… da… rk….."

"Hey, kid! Over here! We need to get out of here now!"

"Need… to… escape? No… this… is home… right…?"

The man didn't wait for the kid to answer as he grabbed his arm and began running for the nearby forest. The sounds of an army on the march filled the night as the man dragged the dazed youth through the forest.

_If it hasn't spread to Etruria yet I might not be too late to organize some resistance, otherwise…_

"There! I can see some stragglers! Move in! None can escape!" a large man with polished silver and gold armor was yelling in their direction. They had been discovered.

**Chapter 1: Preparations**

_Three days earlier…_

"Shawn! Shawn where are you!?"

The spry, crimson-haired girl was delicately wandering through the endless cornfields of her farm, the red sun hung low as the sky turned from blue to purple. The comforting evening breeze did little to soothe the farm girl. This was not the first time her brother slacked off on the job, and she was certain it would not be the last.

"Shawn! Have you forgotten that our farm will be supplying the maize for the Dragon Festival!? If we do not meet the earl's quota we'll be living on the streets!"

She saw a form shifting in the tall grass a few feet from her. With a mischievous grin she pounced on it like a cat on a mouse. "Stop! Stop! Augh hah hah hah! Sis that tickles I can't breathe!" after the boy broke free and caught his breath the red-haired girl snatched him by the ear and began dragging him towards their house. "So what is this, six times now?" she scolded as the boy began yelping again, "Mother and Father entrusted this farm to us with their dying breaths and this is how you repay them!?" In response to her tugging his ear the boy tried to bite her arm. "Augh! Shawn you are fourteen years old! Much too mature to be acting like this! At least I thought you were."

For the first time since she found him the boy spoke, "Amber, I swear I was only asleep for five minutes! I need to recharge after a hard day's work," Although the cowlick in his thick brown hair told her otherwise. "What am I going to do with you?" replied Amber with a sigh. Shawn tried to gain her sympathy by staring up at her with large, apologetic eyes.

"You know that's not going to work on me," she said with a smirk, "After all I _am _the one who has to slaughter the pigs every time they get fat enough, you are always too much of a coward."

"I'm not a coward!" Shawn retorted, "I just don't see them as food, that's all…"

This just caused Amber to laugh some more at Shawn's naïveté. Even though he was irresponsible most of the time, his concern for everything living was touching, if not unfit for a farmer. For the past seven years Amber had undertaken the task of maintaining both the biggest farm in the city and the biggest slacker of a brother one could ask for. Despite how annoying he could be, she could not deny that he meant the world to her, whether she admitted it or not. Lost in thought, she completely forgot about what she was doing and Shawn broke free.

"Ha ha! I've escaped your clutches you evil witch! I hope you're hungry 'cause your about to eat my dust!" he yelled as he sprinted towards the city.

"Hey! Wait!" she began running after him, her long legs allowing her to catch up quickly, "and just where do you think you're going young man? Do you expect me to bring in all that corn by myself!?"

"Maybe if you catch me _I'll _do it myself!" Shawn yelled back. He was so busy taunting her that he had forgotten to watch where he was going. With a tremendous clang he collided at full speed with a tall, robed figure and fell backwards to the ground. The impact had produced a large bump on the side of his head, leaving him dazed and dizzy.

"I am _so _sorry sir," Amber exclaimed as she skidded to a stop, "my brother is a real idiot sometimes." The tall man got up a began dusting off his blue and purple robes, then running his hand through his dark green hair, checking for any bruises.

Upon seeing Amber's apologetic face he softened his expression, "Well, that may be, but I can't deny that this boy reminded me of what I was like years ago." He spoke as if he was an old man, but from his appearance he was probably in his mid-20's. Amber noticed from his attire that he was a magic-user of some kind. Upon hearing this Shawn shot up in a sitting position, completely recovered.

"Ha! See that, sis? Someday I'm gonna be like this guy!" he exclaimed with a gleeful grin, "So what exactly are you anyway, guy? You dress like a lady."

Amber slapped the back of his head at that comment, but the man simply chuckled, his posture regained, "You remind me of my own sister," he said with a soft smile, "When we were young she always pestered me, telling me to do my studies. She was right of course, and if it weren't for her I probably would hold the position I do today."

"So what are you?" Shawn repeated, his eyes glowing with curiosity.

"You may call me Aeolin," the man replied, raising his hand to his chest, "Mage General of Etruria." Amber's eyes suddenly widened as her face turned beet red.

"My humblest apologies, milord," she stammered, falling to her knees, "please find it in your heart to pardon my brother of his most heinous crime." Shawn, on the other hand, continued to look up at him in amazement.

"I'd hardly call accidentally running into someone a crime," Aeolin replied, "and please, do not let my title intimidate you, for the festival I am simply another customer, eager for merrymaking."

Suddenly a loud shout came from behind the group. They turned to see a young cleric running towards them, almost tripping over her robes. She wore her purple hair in a long braid that ran down her back and had large glasses that seemed to never stay on her face.

"Master Aeolin! Master Aeolin!" she called out in a panic, "Honker's gone missing! Oh dear, oh dear what will we do!?"

"Well, it seems I will have to cut this meeting short," he told Amber with a grin, "Duty calls." With that he left them on the side of the road as he left to join his companion. Shawn stared after him in admiration as Amber began dragging him home. The rest of the day went by rather uneventfully as they worked into the night on the cornfield. It was well after midnight that they finally finished their work and went inside.

"I'm so tired, sis," Shawn said as they walked into their cozy living room. Amber began starting a fire in their fireplace to start making dinner. Shawn slumped onto the wool couch and began chewing on some straw he picked up on the walk home. If on this farm was rather comfortable most of the time; there were only two mouths to feed in the house and money was easy to come by since they owned the only corn plantation in Araphen.

"I'm glad I had your help this evening," said Amber, casually stirring the carrots and potatoes into the stew over the fire, "You may be a pain, but I hope you realize how helpful you are."

"Well, I only do it 'cause I know you'll beat me up if I don't," Shawn replied unconvincingly as he hid a blush. Despite his rebellious side, he would never dream of hurting his sister.

"Aww, did I embarrass my tough, wittle, bwother?" she said mockingly, pinching his cheek. She pulled away laughing as he tried to bite her finger. He never liked the idea of showing weakness, especially in front of Amber.

"Don't worry, sis," he said, sitting up, "Someday I will become tough, and I'll prove to you and the rest of the world that I am able to protect this farm!" he held his hand up high as if challenging the heavens themselves.

This caused her to chuckle even more, "You don't need to prove anything to me, Shawn," she said warmly, "I know you will be strong, I raised you didn't I?" With the Dragon Festival now two days away, they knew that tomorrow was going to be another busy day of harvesting, but at the moment, they enjoyed the comfort of each other's company with a soothing bowl of stew.

The skies over the Lycian capital of Pherae were muddled with black, ominous clouds that entailed a terrible storm to come. Prince Kardin lounged into his azure and gold throne, trivially twirling a chain of keys around his fingers while running his other hand through his combed blonde hair. He always had hated waiting, but this time in particular was considerably jarring for him. Once he tired of playing with his keys he stood and began pacing about the grandiose throne room, lightning could be seen splashing in the distance from the huge windows overlooking the country. Above these windows was a large painting of the founder of the United Kingdom of Lycia, King Roy. Kardin admired his ancestor greatly and was famous of upholding his ideals of unification.

"I give you my word, King Roy," said Kardin as he stared at the dancing lightning outside, "Your vision of a perfect kingdom will soon come to fruition."

As he finished this personal vow the majestic double doors at the other end of the grand room opened to reveal a hooded knight entering in a hurry. His cloak concealed a large body that was encased in an even larger suit of polished silver and gold armor. The crest of Lycia was prominently displayed on his chest piece with a bold dark blue hue. As he briskly paced towards the prince he removed his cowl, revealing a middle-aged face that had seen more than a handful of battles. Jet black hair was slicked and combed back, forming a short mullet connecting a modest, clean cut beard that thinly ran from his ears to the tip of his chin, giving him a dignified composure. He fell to one knee after stopping a few feet away from the shallow steps leading up to the throne.

"Milord, I bring news from Ostia," he began, wasting no time on pleasantries, "The team you dispatched believes that they found the artifact you were searching for. It will be delivered to you within a day and will be ready of activation on your whim."

The prince cracked a grin upon hearing this news, his heartbeat began to quicken and he noticed the hairs on his neck standing on end, as if he were electrified. "This is grand news indeed, General Faust. After ten long years of preparation my plan is finally reaching its final stages. Soon I will purify Lycia. Only through infinite knowledge can infinite peace be attained."

**End of Chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

The evening air was heavy with the warm smell of booze and pastries as travelers from around Lycia greeted distant friends and relatives. The bulk of the crowd was gathered in the main commercial district of Araphen where souvenirs and party food could be purchased. Orange paper lamps were strewn among the buildings in no particular pattern. The low, comforting buzz of the crowd was enough to lull a baby to sleep.

"How many does that make it?" slurred a green-haired man as he downed a shot of whiskey. He was bundled up in several layers of clothing despite it being the height of summer.

"Seventeen for you, twenty for me," replied the war maiden competing with him in perfect intonation. She was sporting a hide chest plate with furry shoulder pads, giving her the appearance of a large grizzly bear. Despite her menacing size, she was not unattractive. Her skin was fairly smooth, especially around her head, and her maroon hair, though un-kept, flowed nicely down to the length of her neck. Perhaps the most striking part of her body was her eyes, giving off an almost infectious sense of excitement. She also had a massive double-edged axe sheathed around her back to remind people of her days as a mercenary. Hilda the Wild she was formerly known as, before her retirement.

"Why don't ya give it up chump?" she taunted, taking another shot, "Back in my day, people had to call in extra shipments of rum when they heard I was comin' to town!"

"No way missy," he retorted, swaying back and forth, "I've got five thousand gold riding on this game. I've got a promise to keep! Orders to follow!"

As the words left his mouth he suddenly collapsed sideways, spilling the whiskey that was in his hand all over himself. Hilda cracked a victorious grin as she shoveled the gold that was in the middle of the table into a large sack. A thunderous applause erupted from the cheering onlookers as they cheered her name.

_Two days until the Dragon Festival and I've already emptied their whiskey coffers, how irresponsible of me…_

* * *

**Chapter 2: The Great Engineer**

"Honker! You had me worried sick! Don't you ever run off on me again, you hear me?" the purple-haired cleric was scolding a rather dejected-looking turtle. The turtle itself was normal enough, except for the fact that he weighed nearly half a ton and was four meters long. His only other prominent feature was the small sailor's cap that it wore on its head.

"If it weren't for Master Aeolin I'm positive you would have ended up mounted on someone wall for sure!" she continued in her shrill voice, waving her index finger at him, "Don't leave my side for the rest of the trip you hear me?"

"I think he heard you just fine during the first five minutes of your ranting," said the figure sitting in the corner of the room, his head in a book, "He's learned his lesson, give it a rest. You'll kill your voice… and my ears." There were several magic staves lined next to his chair.

"Master Aeolin how rude!" retorted the young cleric in the same shrill tone, "If Honker doesn't learn discipline he will become rebellious, falling into a life of delinquency and hedonism! It is my responsibility to lead him into the light and uphold the ideals of Elimine! I treat him as I would treat anyone who had strayed from the righteous path! He must-!"

Suddenly a flash of light erupted around the seething cleric. Her mouth continued to rapidly move but no sound was heard. Aeolin put down the Silence staff and continued his studies in peace. After a while the cleric realized her words were not being heard and she calmed down, sitting on one of the hotel room's beds puffing her cheeks out in an exaggerated pout. She hadn't even noticed that her glasses had fallen off during her tantrum. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Enter," said Aeolin, not looking up from his book. The door slowly swung open to reveal an average height man in a scarf and cloak. Even though it was the height of summer in Lycia, this man was dressed for an arctic expedition. The many layers of clothing he had on made him appear slightly chunkier than he actually was. His green hair was held up by a wool headband and short, upright ponytail.

"General Aeolin, Lady Leah, Honker," he began as he stepped through the door, "I have news from Ostia concerning Prince Kardin."

"Agent Rudolph," said Aeolin in a much lighter tone, "this is a festival, and I am just a traveler who is eager to make merry, so please, just for today, you may drop the formalities."

"If that is your wish, milord," replied Rudolph, his tone still stiff. Aeolin's expression suddenly turned comical as he noticed the spy's clothing.

"Elimine preserve us, what in blazes are you wearing?" he exclaimed, pointing at Rudolph's large cloak, "Pile anymore clothing on and you'll probably melt!"

"Sir, you are well aware of my… discomfort for the cold," replied Rudolph, irritated.

"That would make sense if it actually _were _cold," said Aeolin with a chuckle, "Seriously though, you should see a doctor or something, because I'm pretty sure this isn't normal."

Rudolph simply grimaced and let out a tired sigh, "What kind of example are you setting for young Lady Leah? There are times I am convinced that she's the mature one."

"At times maybe," replied Aeolin with a small grin, "but enough of that. You said you had news from Ostia?"

"Yes sir," began Rudolph as he regained his composure, "Five days ago I began tracking a small group of Pheraen scientists who had gone into Ostia under the guise of travelling merchants. Evidently they were interested in the works of the Great Engineer, I'm sure you're familiar with him."

"Right," replied Aeolin, "Legends say that the Great Engineer was responsible for the greatest technological advancements of this age. Muskets, motors, light bulbs, he was a genius ahead of his time."

"There was more," Rudolph continued, "In additions to his scientific advances, the Great Engineer also secretly developed powerful magical devices as well. This is the part of the story that most people have forgotten."

"Well this is the first I've heard of it," said Aeolin with a frown.

"It is believed that the Great Engineer constructed seven magical artifacts, each with enough power to end the world as we know it." This caused Aeolin and Leah to stiffen in shock.

"Why has this part of the story been lost?" asked Aeolin, his cheerful demeanor gone.

"Why do you think?" replied Rudolph, "If people knew about these artifacts and, gods forbid, get their hands on them, there is no telling what kind of chaos would ensue."

Aeolin did not like where this was going. Rudolph had said he had news concerning the Prince. If someone like Kardin, the soon-to-be leader of the country was involved in something this serious…

"What does this have to do with Prince Kardin?"

Rudolph's expression became bleaker, "I believe they found the location of one of them: the Amulet of Souls."

Judging by the way Rudolph spoke, Aeolin could already tell this was trouble, "Do I dare ask what this amulet is?"

"Nobody knows for sure what the Great Engineer's magical artifacts are fully capable of, just that the mere knowledge of their existence can threaten the stability of our nation."

After a long moment of awkward silence Aeolin spoke, "We cannot jump to any hasty conclusions at this juncture. Until we are certain that the Prince is in possession of such a tool, and intends to use it for malicious purposes, we cannot and will not take action, do I make myself clear Rudolph?"

"But—"

"If we interfere in matters concerning the Prince we will be subject to the political fallout. Kardin is very popular with the people for upholding our founder's ideals. I promise I will heed your warnings but I don't want any unnecessary trouble to arise due to hasty decision-making. Am I clear, Agent Rudolph?"

"Yes sir… please accept my apology," replied Rudolph, slightly bowing his head.

"No harm done," said Aeolin, waving his hand. A couple more seconds of awkward silence followed before he spoke again, "Well, now that that's over with why don't you stick around?" Aeolin's cheerful disposition was revived.

"I'm sorry sir," replied Rudolph after a moment's hesitation, "I really need to report back to—"

"Nonsense," Aeolin cut him off, "You are an Agent to the Etrurian Council, which means you answer to the Mage Generals, ergo you shall remain here as my bodyguard for the duration of my vacation."

"Did I even say I wanted to stay in this city?" Rudolph pointed out, flabbergasted.

"No, but you never were one to question orders were you?" replied Aeolin with a sly grin, "I'll call up another cot, in the meantime I suggest you make good use of the rest of the evening. I heard there was a drinking contest going on near the market square." Aeolin tossed Rudolph a small sack that had been sitting on the desk next his chair, "Here's five thousand gold, now go my good man! Go show the world what a champion you are!"

"Milord I am no drinker; however I am also not one to shy away from a challenge. Your wish is my command, General Aeolin." Rudolph turned to leave, quietly shutting the door as he left. Aeolin couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

"Nicely done, General," came a shrill but now calm voice from the bed, "You've just wasted five thousand gold."

"Yeah, you're probably right, Leah," replied Aeolin, "But did you see the look on his face as he left, totally worth it."

"He's right you know," Leah condescended, her nose held high, "You are a terrible influence on me."

* * *

"My Prince, I present to you the Great Engineer's magnum opus," said the massive silver and gold knight. He knelt while holding up a necklace with a gold-encrusted form at its end. The eerie gem gave off a warm glow that produced no light. The simplicity of its design was off-set by the tremendous pressure it exerted on the two people in the room. Draping the artifact around his neck Prince Kardin held his arms up as if reaching for the cosmos, "King Roy, with this amulet, your dream of peace will finally become a reality. Oh great founder of this nation, thy will be done." On the eve of the nation's anniversary, the most joyful time of the year, Lycia would be changed forever.

**End of Chapter 2**


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